Hats
by Little Nemo
Summary: Everyone has a hat. Red thinks Green should wear one too. Green discovers something else during the ensuing chaos. Pokemon Special manga based. Red/Green fic. Japanese version.


A/N: Dedicated to Crisis, who gave me the prompt to work with. More Red/Green for the world! Constructive criticism very much welcome.

Enjoy.

Disclaimer: I do not own Pokemon Special or any of the characters.

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Green was used to Red staring at him with unnerving scrutiny. They were the best of rivals, the best of friends, so it was completely natural for each other to study one another so intensely.

However, this kind of staring? It was making him, Green, the cool and collected one, twitch out of nerves. There was something quite different about this gaze, something in it that Green was absolutely sure that if he had any ounce of common sense, he'd run away from it and fast.

Then again, ever since meeting Red, common sense slowly stopped appearing as often as it usually did.

There was also the fact that he would not run away because Red was eying him in a strange, strange way. He wasn't a coward.

After several minutes of the scrutiny, Red slowly began to edge closer as if that would help him study the other boy better. Green, to his credit, merely ignored him and went back to his books.

A few more minutes passed with peaceful, blessed silence.

Peaceful, blessed, unnerving silence.

With Red in the room.

Unconsciously, Green found himself turning his gaze to the side very slightly. And found himself only an inch away from Red.

He bit down on the urge to jump back and fall over in surprise and gave the boy a flat look.

"What do you want?" He was tired, grumpy and needed to finish this research. Dealing with Red's shenanigans was the last thing on this mind.

Red frowned and continued to study him, leaning in closer. Green unconsciously found himself leaning back a little. He did not like his personal bubble being breached, _thankyouverymuch_ and best friend or not, Red was not supposed to be that close. Especially not close enough that Green could see that Red's eyes were a deep shade of red and not the brown he once mistook it for when they first met.

"You need a hat!"

Green eyes blinked. A hand edged for a thick, heavy tomb to smack some sense into people with.

"A what." Good, at least self control didn't abandon him this time.

Red beamed at him.

"A hat!" He declared brightly as if he had discovered some deep, dark secret that could be the key to the full understanding of Pokémon without the powers of the viridian forest.

Green gave Red another flat stare.

"I don't need a hat."

"Yeah, you do!"

"No, I don't."

"Do too!"

"Do n---" Green abruptly cut himself off and settled for glare. He was not being dragged into Red's childish games. "I do not need a hat."

"You do!" Red insisted, bouncing up and down on his seat slightly. "Everyone has a hat except for you!"

Green twitched. "Not everyone.."

"Yes everyone! I have a hat, Blue has a hat, Yellow has a hat, Gold has a hat, Crystal has a hat-"

"Silver doesn't," Green pointed out triumphantly. Red smirked slightly and Green twitched at the sight. What was Red planning now?

"Gold is working on him," Red informed solemnly. Green highly doubted that Gold would succeed. There were times where Silver's stubborn attitude matched his, Red's and Gold's combined. And he wasn't certainly helping Red and Gold out on this endeavour, with their sudden obsession with everyone wearing a hat.

"Either way," Green gritted out, "I'm not wearing a hat. I never needed one before and I never will."

"What about sun burn? Or even skin cancer! You need a hat to protect you from that!"

"There's sunscreen," Green countered with a smug look as Red's determined triumphant look faltered. Red didn't need to know Green didn't even bother with sunscreen. He continued for a finishing blow. "Besides, I doubt your cap or Crystal's hat covers and protects your whole face from UV rays, so quite frankly, I think hats are useless. I do not need one. I don't want one. I will not get a hat."

Red scowled. "Yeah you do! You need to match, come on Green!" With that, he tackled the boy around his waist, catching him off guard(stupid, stupid, stupid Red and his ability to make people lower their guards all the time) and looked up with pleading eyes. "It's just a hat! You don't even need to wear it all the time!"

Green ignored the pleading look(he was immune to both Blue and Yellow- he wasn't about to fall all over himself for Red's so called puppy dog eyes).

"I'm not getting a hat."

"Please?"

"No."

"Please?"

"No."

"Pretty please?"

"No.

"Pretty please with cherries on top?"

"No." By turning back to his book, he figured that Red would realize his presence was not wanted and would leave. It was a hopelessly optimistic thought, but who knows, maybe Red would get a clue.

He really should've known better. In response, Red clung tighter to his side.

"Greeeeeeeeeen," he whined. Green was tempted to mimic him with "Reeeeeeeeeeeeeeeed" but he was better than that and a lot more mature. He would not sink down to the 9th champion of the Indigo League's level, ever.

"It's just a hat."

"Exactly, I don't want one."

"But it's a hat."

"I don't want or need to waste my money on one."

Red suddenly brightened and Green wondered whether stupidity was contagious. If it was, Green was going to kill Red for killing off some of his brain cells and allowing the boy to get in an opening like that.

"If money is the problem," Red sang as he finally let go(much to Green's relief- that was his personal bubble being invaded). He then whipped off his own hat and grinned evilly at the green eyed trainer.

"Then you can have mine!"

With that, hell broke loose.

"DAMN IT RED! GET YOUR HAT AWAY FROM ME!"

"BUT YOU NEED A HAT TO MATCH AND I HAVE LOADS OF THESE SO I DON'T MIND GIVING YOU ONE SO WE ALL MATCH!"

"I SAID I DO NOT WANT OR NEED TO MATCH UP WITH EVERYONE ELSE! ESPECIALLY NOT YOU!"

"GREEEN! IT'S A HAT! COME ON!" A loud crash and bang.

"GET OFF! Damn it, when did you become so heavy!" They rolled around for a bit in an attempt to gain the upper hand. Green may have been physically stronger and better trained but he wasn't prepared for the tackle Red had delivered to him earlier- stupid, stupid Red and his ability to lower guards down to the point where they were nonexistent.

"When I became taller than you so just put this on already!"

"NO!"

"YES!"

"NO---this is ridiculous, Red, just get off already!"

"NO! I WON'T! NOT UNTIL YOU WEAR THIS HAT!" More sounds of struggling.

"I'm not wearing it, so give it up!" If Red was going to continue this way, Green was going to need a new strategy. An unholy glint of his own appeared in his eyes and he bit back a smug smile in order to hide his game plan. He gave a grunt as he flipped Red over, pinning him down.

"I never give up as long as I have a chance!" Red continued to struggle, waving his cap around madly as he tried to force it on Green's head. It didn't work considering the fact that Green had him pinned down pretty well- but on the other hand, Green couldn't let go to snatch the hat away or Red could easily break out of the hold.

"Just give it up or else!"

"Or else wh---mmmfff!"

Meanwhile, outside the laboratory doors, Yellow and Gold stared blankly at the ensuing chaos. While they couldn't see anything, from the sounds ensuing from the laboratory, they both had a general idea of what was going on. But whether they had the same idea was a completely different story.

"Come on, let's go-"

"No, we should just leave them-" Yellow sounded horrified at the thought of running in on them.

"They're going to kill each other, we have to stop-" Gold sounded confused at the idea that Yellow didn't want to stop a fight of all things.

"They wouldn't kill each other, not after going through so much."

"True enough. And they'd probably kill us if we ran in there and—well, they'd kill me, Green that is and—oh, right! I HAVE TO GET SILVER!" And Gold bolted off shouting something about hats and Silver, leaving a bewildered Yellow behind. Another crash and bang and something that sounded like a muffled cry out from the laboratory.

Yellow gave the doors another long stare before walking away. Green and Red were being rather silly that day, for sure. But neither were stupid enough to start releasing Pokémon indoors with delicate equipment surrounding them and their Pokémon were smarter than to get involved in some of their sillier spats.

It was just another day, another fight.

Then there was a loud moan and Yellow quickly decided that she did not want to be there anymore and took off at full speed to find Blue. Or Pokémon. Just anyone.

- -

There was a moment of peaceful silence was the two boys lay sprawled across each other, sweaty with their clothes and hair dishevelled. Red panted heavily for a moment, his lips swollen and somewhat bruised before rolling over with a triumphant smile.

"I won!" He cheered tugging at Green's black shirt in order to pull him closer. Green grumbled though he didn't seem to mind that Red's hat was stuck halfway over his head, messing up his spiky hair.

"I let you win," Green deadpanned inwardly smiling at the annoyed look that flickered across Red's face. He wriggled a little closer and ran his fingers lightly over the base of Red's neck, ready to make his move if Red got too fired up.

"Did not," Red argued quietly, too exhausted after their "match" to kick up too much of a fuss. "I won, fair and square. You're wearing the hat, after all."

Green rolled his eyes. "Only because I let you."

"I still won."

Green conceded.

Another moment of blissful silence and then-

"...though, you were probably right in not wanting to wear the hat. You look stupid in it."

Green rolled his eyes and bopped Red over the head("OUCH!" Red cried) before entwining his fingers into the boy's short, black, silky hair with a smug smirk. He rubbed his fingers just so, aiming for the reaction he had gotten earlier.

Instantly, Red melted, turning into a pile of mewling, almost purring mush.

"You might have won this time," Green murmured softly leaning into the taller boy. It was a good thing, not for Red but for him, that Red was so insistent on making him wear a hat that he took off his own to do so.

"But _I_ have found a far greater weapon to use against you." Red sighed happily under Green's petting but opened his eyes to give him a baleful look.

"S'not fair," he complained, pressing up against the palm of Green's hand, much like a Skitty would under the same ministrations.

Green smirked and slowly stopped the petting n order to allow Red to gain some semblance of his mush filled mind.

"I'll think I'll be making sure you don't wear your hat anymore either."

Red bristled and bolted up slightly.

"You leave my hat---" he groaned and flopped back down as Green continued his petting.

"S'my hat. Leave it alone." There was a pitiful whine to his voice.

Well, maybe he would listen this once.

What kind of secret weapon would he have against Red, if everyone else knew about it too?


End file.
